Filming a mammoth pageant
Ruwini Jayawardana
It has gone down in history as one of the most spectacular religious
procession in Asia and indeed the procession has earned the title.
Brimming with colour and multifaceted features, the Kandy Esala Perahera
is considered as a cultural hallmark of Sri Lanka.
Dancers, drummers, fire jugglers, whip crackers, torch bearers and
elegantly decorated elephants make up the grand procession which takes
to the streets of Kandy in July annually.
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Sudath Mahadiulwewa. Picture by Saman
Sri Wedage |
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Multifaceted features of the pageant |
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Kandyan
dancers add colour to the event |
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Moving to
the drum beats |
The most majestic sight of them all, the magnificent tusker parading
the golden casket on his back, evokes a sense of wonder and serenity in
the viewers.
Filming such a mammoth pageant is no walk in the park. Many crew
members from various television channels have captured this pageant each
year in the past in whichever manner they believed is best for the mini
screen.
However this year Diyawadana Nilame Pradeep Nilanga Dela Bandara
decided to hand this mission over to an individual best suited to
spearhead the task with a few handpicked cameramen, the cream out of the
local television industry.
Renowned filmmaker Sudath Mahadiulwewa led the team. He was invited
to take over the project by the Sri Dalada Maligawa Media Unit Director
Krishantha Hiswella. The reason behind this move is that whenever the
artistes who take part in the process see a camera they pause and begin
performing there. Due to this the Perahera drags on for about four
hours.
“They were also worried about it affecting the quality of the
Perahera. The artistes also get tired when they have to perform
vigorously in several places. However the main reason for this is that
the Perahera has been captured so far like a news item,” Mahadiulwewa
said adding that he studied some of the past Perahera videos before
deciding on the best means of filming the event.
“I noticed that the Perahera has been light up too much in the
videos. I wanted to show it in the copra lamp light amid the sound of
the drum beats. I wanted it to be just as if the viewers are standing by
the roadside watching the event. We controlled the lighting above the
camera so that it would not be illuminated too much. I also noticed that
the previous recordings were overloaded with the narrators’ voices.
Though they relating things like their childhood experiences this
distracts the viewers from the Perahera. We planned the comments which
go with every item and kept the descriptions brief, appealing and to the
point. Krishantha Dayananda and Mahinda Kumara Dalupotha took over this
chore,” he explained.
The Perahera is the emblem of a rich cultural heritage and there are
many significant aspects linked with it. For example the whip crackers
lead the procession to announce the start of the procession and to clear
the path.
There is a cultural belief attached to this as well. The pageant is a
means of evoking rain. The whip crackers signify thunder while the fire
dancers symbolize lightening. The elephants represent rain clouds.
“A person watching the Perahera on the road actually sees three
angles of the procession. That is the angle in which it is coming
towards him or her, crossing over in front of the person and passing him
or her. I was intrigued by this especially because camera angles matter
a lot in such an event. If the angles are wrong it gives a wrong
picture,” he said.
He notes that some elements which have not been captured on camera
before have been included in this year's filming. For example they had
been able to film the Kavikara Maduwa, a set of people singing to the
tooth relic. So far the focus has been solely on the golden casket so
the filming teams have miss out on that part.
Mahadiulwewa not only captured the event in the procession but they
were able to get a clear soundtrack on what is being sung. They also
captured the 10 village Headmen walking in a perfect curve behind the
Diyawadana Nileme.
“I have always handled situations in which I was in control. This is
the first time I took up an event in which the action is taking place
live and is beyond my control. The most challenging part of this is that
we ourselves are not the creators of the event. These traditions have
existed for many years and it is up to us to capture it in a creative
manner,” he said adding that every day the tempo of the Perahera
differs, an aspect they noted because they filmed two Peraheras before
the last as part of rehearsals.
Ranga Bandaranaike assisted Mahadiulwewa while the team comprised of
more than 35 people. Eight cameramen representing nearly all the
television channels in the country took part in the project. Vogeshwaran
acted as the switcher. For the first time one top angle remote
controlled camera was introduced to film a live event in Sri Lanka. This
was mainly due to the fact that a human being cannot be on a higher
angle than the golden casket. Thus the audience was able to see the
manner in which the tusker stood waiting for the white cloth to be laid
at his feet before setting foot on the ground.
Mahadiulwewa notes that there was some opposition against him being
given the opportunity to handle the task. Some people have gone as far
as to question about his experience in handling such a project.
He said, “Working with camera crew for many years I know how to take
the upper hand in a situation. True, I had to start from the beginning
but I did my homework and prepared myself to take on the challenge.”
He recalled that unexpected events like two elephants dancing to the
tempo too were captured on camera. The team managed to include 21
behind-the-scene incidents linked with the customs of the Perahera in
the segment.
Before embarking on the project they had a workshop for all those in
the team to create awareness about the important aspects linked with the
filming. Mahadiulwewa stressed that the Maligawa Media Unit team
provided necessary backup to make the filming a success.
“I believe we have set a new trend in which others can follow. The
event was distributed to all the channels free of charge. Channels
invest a lot of money to cover this event but this time they were able
to save that amount as well as get a quality product in return,” he
concluded.
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